Colorado House Speaker Frank McNulty said today the House is empaneling a special ethics committee to look into the Jan. 25 traffic stop that has caused a storm of publicity around Rep. Laura Bradford.

A statement from House Republicans said the committee’s purpose is “to investigate whether Bradford was driving under the influence of alcohol and whether she invoked legislative privilege against arrest.”

Bradford, R-Collbran, was stopped last week at about 10 p.m. in the Capitol Hill area on Colfax. Officers suspected her of being intoxicated but later let her leave the scene in a taxi, saying she invoked legislative immunity from being arrested.

However, in a press conference this afternoon, Denver Police retracted that statement and apologized to Bradford, saying she asked to be treated like anyone else.

“From our standpoint, we still recognize the seriousness of the situation,” McNulty said. “We appreciate the fact that the Denver Police Department has been forthcoming on this question.

“We will continue to pursue this with the recognition of how important it is.”

The ethics panel will be headed by Rep. Tom Massey, R-Poncha Springs, with Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, as vice chairwoman. The meeting schedule has not been set yet.

House Democrats picked Rep. Mark Ferrandino of Denver to be their new minority leader today, making him the first gay man in Colorado history to hold such a high leadership position in the legislature.

And if Democrats in 2012 take back the House, which Republicans now hold with a 33-32 majority, Ferrandino could be in line to become the first gay speaker in state history.

“We’re going to retake the House after 2012 because we’re going to continue to fight for regular people across Colorado,” Ferrandino said, “making sure we have good jobs and protecting funding for education so our kids have the education they need to compete in the 21st century.”

Ferrandino, 34, replaces Rep. Sal Pace of Pueblo, who is running for Congress and who announced earlier this week he was stepping down from his leadership post.

House Minority Leader Sal Pace said today he was stepping down from his leadership post, a move that will allow him to focus his attention on his run for the 3rd Congressional District.

Pace, D-Pueblo, has led House Democrats since they lost the majority in 2010. He said he will remain in the legislature while running for Congress against current incumbent U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, a Republican from Cortez, but added that 2012 will mark his last session.

“I planned on leaving the legislature after this next year,” Pace said. “I thought it was important to get some leadership in place that would provide continuity for the caucus.”

Pace was elected to the House in 2008, and before that, directed Congressman John Salazar’s district office. A consummate partisan, Pace is nonetheless good friends with House Speaker Frank McNulty, R-Highlands Ranch, and both are Roman Catholics.

Pace’s wife just had a new child, the third for his family, as he attempts his run for Congress.

“I have a lot of commitments and a lot on my plate,” he said. “I thought the caucus deserved a minority leader whose No. 1 focus is serving as minority leader.”

House Democrats will hold a caucus meeting Friday morning to elect a new leader, and potential contenders now include Rep. Mark Ferrandino of Denver, a member of the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee; Rep. Nancy Todd of Aurora, the current assistant minority leader; Rep. Claire Levy of Boulder, the minority whip; and Rep. Dickey Lee Hullinghorst of Boulder.

Several sources said the caucus support is behind Ferrandino, a former state budget analyst with a keen knowledge of fiscal matters. If Ferrandino became minority leader, it would create a vacancy for a House Democrat on the Joint Budget Committee.

A bill that would remove the requirement that Coloradans have a permit to carry concealed weapons – if they are otherwise qualified to do so – won initial approval in the state House today.

Under House Bill 1205, concealed carry permits would still exist, but anyone who meets the criteria to carry concealed – which would not include those barred for reasons such as felonies, mental health and substance abuse problems or domestic violence convictions – could carry a firearm concealed. However, critics, which include police chiefs and advocates for victims of domestic violence, say that under the bill, there would be no way to screen out those with felonies or other disqualifying factors because people carrying concealed would be expected to police themselves.

Rep. Chris Holbert, R-Parker, the sponsor of the bill, pointed to Vermont, which does not require a permit to carry a concealed weapon. He said it is “insulting” to require him to have a concealed carry permit when current Colorado law already allows him to carry concealed on his own property and in his car.

Well, I explained, Republicans were talking about how with their party in charge of the state House for the next two years being a vegan is out. When I asked who was a vegan, because I didn’t know of a single one among the 32 House Democrats, there was hemming and hawing, then speculation that maybe Levy, a Boulder Democrat, was one.

Joey Bunch has been a reporter for 28 years, including the last 12 at The Denver Post. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry.